Reign of the Rejected Rosary (Ryden/Peterick)

Chapter Twenty

Pete and I were soon on our way to Spencer's house. His hands trembled on the steering wheel, and even though I offered to drive, Pete was insistent on doing it himself. He was scared and angry and I didn't trust him behind the wheel, but you couldn't argue with him.

My knee shook anxiously. Pete didn't say anything. I didn't say anything. The radio was off. The whole ride was silent.

When we got to Spencer's house, Pete parked the car, and he was pulling the keys from the ignition as he got out. I followed behind him, but he was taking the porch steps two at a time, and knocked hard on the door.

Spencer answered the door, and looked taken aback to see Pete and I standing there. He didn't know I was acquainted with Patrick, let alone Patrick's husband.

"Is Ryan here?" Pete asked. "We need him to come with us."

Spencer yelled up the staircase for Ryan to hurry down, and then he looked back to us.

"Is there something wrong?" Spencer asked, looking worried.

"We think we know where Patrick is," I said. "We need Ryan to help us."

"Let me come," Spencer said. "You can always use back-up."

Pete pursed his lips a bit, and was tapping his foot in annoyance.

"Fine," Pete said. "Get in the car. Brendon, go with him. It'll save time."

I walked back to the car with Spencer. He sat in the driver's seat, and I sat in the back. He knew Pete would be in too much of a hurry to make him move, and Pete was in no condition to keep driving, anyway.

Pete flung open the door to the passenger seat and tossed the keys to Spencer as he got in. Ryan got in the back next to me.

"What's going on, Bren?" he asked quietly.

Pete was yelling instructions at Spencer, and Spencer was frantically trying to follow them.

"We think Patrick is with your dad," I whispered. "We're worried he's hurting him."

Ryan's eyes widened.

"Why would Patrick ever go back there? Especially after the accident? My dad used to beat him. Everyone knows that. He was even almost arrested for it."

I shrugged, even though I knew. I didn't want to tell Ryan what Pete and I came to the conclusion of. Or what Patrick told me that night in Chicago.

"Do you think he's okay?" Ryan asked, so quietly that I almost didn't even hear it.

"No," I admitted. "He would've come back if nothing was wrong."

Ryan reached over and took my hand, squeezing it tight.

"I didn't know that you were the friend Patrick was always talking about."

"He told you about me?"

Ryan nodded. "All the time. He was always really worried about you. But you know how Patrick is. He worries about everyone and everything."

Patrick does worry about everything. He's so careful when he speaks, and hides his true thoughts when he writes so you can't figure him out unless it's meant for you.

Spencer parked down the street from Ryan's dad's house. I was about to question it, but Pete turned in his seat so he could see all of us.

"Okay, here's the plan," he said. "Spencer, you stay here. Keep your phone ready. One of us will contact you with instructions once we find Patrick. Ryan, you go in. You're the distraction, so I need you to---"

"Wait," I interrupted, much to Pete's annoyance. "What if Ryan gets hurt?"

Pete glanced down at our joined hands. I never told him. Patrick didn't know, either, but how could he?

"He won't hurt me," Ryan said. "As long as he has Patrick he doesn't need to waste energy on me."

I didn't want to trust that Ryan would be okay, but I nodded for Pete to continue.

"Ryan, you have five minutes to get in, and stay contained with him in a room. Leave the front door unlocked. Then Brendon and I will go in. I'll go upstairs; Brendon, you take the downstairs. Everyone keep your phones on silent. Thats how we'll communicate. Once one of us finds Patrick, we'll text the rest of the party. Spencer, when you get that text, pull into the driveway. Ryan, when you see it, wait until Spencer lets you know that we're all in the car and then run. Am I clear?"

We all nodded, and Ryan, Pete and I got out of the car.

"Stay safe," Spencer said. "If I don't hear from any of you in fifteen minutes, I'm calling the cops."

"Good call," Pete agreed. "Okay, let's go."

Author's Note
So there's about four chapters left, and then an epilogue. And let me tell you, it's all about to get intense.
On a different note, I have a new Peterick fic just kind of hanging out in my drafts. If I published it would anyone be interested in reading it?? Let me know.